Bins and recycling

Strike action to disrupt Stirling’s waste services

Stirling Council residents are warned to expect major disruption to bin collections from this Friday 23/08/22)

Strike action to disrupt Stirling’s waste services
Strike action to disrupt Stirling’s waste services

Local UNISON members in the Council’s waste and recycling service will go on strike from Friday 26 August to Monday 29 August as part of national industrial action over pay for Council workers.

Scheduled household bin collections and recycling centre opening times will be impacted as a result between Friday 26 August and Sunday 4 September.

Contingency plans

Over the coming weeks, the Council will deploy the following contingency plans:

  • Between Friday 26 August and Sunday 4 September, the collection of grey, healthcare and brown bins will be prioritised. Households due a collection for any of these bins should present them in the normal place and time and leave them out until they are emptied
  • Green and blue bins will not be collected between Friday 26 August and Sunday 4 September. Please do not present these bins until their next collection date
  • Polmaise and Callander Recycling Centres will close Friday 26 August – Monday 29 August (inclusive)
  • Balfron Recycling Centre will close on Friday 26 August and re-open on the evening of Monday 29 August.

"Be prepared"

Cllr Jen Preston, Convener of Stirling Council’s Environment and Housing committee, said: “There is going to be significant disruption so we’re asking residents to be prepared for this and do what they can to ensure they’re recycling properly to maximise bin capacity in the coming days.

“We’re going to prioritise the collection of grey, healthcare and brown bin waste during this time but our ability to do that will depend on our staffing resources. We can’t predict that in advance but we do aim to use any resources we have to target collections of these bins.

“We have had to cancel the scheduled collection of blue and green bins over this period to help us achieve this aim and, once the first strike is over, we’ll catch up on all outstanding grey, healthcare and brown bin collections by Sunday 4 September.

“We understand the impact and inconvenience this will cause and appreciate householders’ patience and understanding.”

Further information

A second period of industrial action is also planned between 7 and 10 September. Further information will be provided on the impact of this in due course.

In the meantime, the Council has prepared a special information page on its website at www.stirling.gov.uk/wastestrike

Residents are encouraged to check their bin calendar ahead of the strike, which can be done online here: https://stirling.gov.uk/bins-waste-recycling/bin-collection-dates/

New calendars will be uploaded in September, with paper copies issued following the strike period.

Regular reminders of the contingency arrangements will be posted on the Council’s Facebook and Twitter channels throughout the coming weeks.